St. Joseph’s Mass now available through webcasts

St. Joseph Catholic Church member Dave Fisher explains how the church’s new webcasting feature is helping a friend who has trouble hearing.

By Laura Turner

Pekin Daily Times

By Laura Turner

Posted Aug. 27, 2011 at 12:01 AM
Updated Aug 27, 2011 at 12:30 AM

By Laura Turner

Posted Aug. 27, 2011 at 12:01 AM
Updated Aug 27, 2011 at 12:30 AM

PEKIN, Ill.

St. Joseph Catholic Church member Dave Fisher explains how the church’s new webcasting feature is helping a friend who has trouble hearing.

“I have a friend who is hard of hearing. She goes to Mass, then goes home and watches the webcast, turning it (volume) up until she can hear it,” he said. “These are the stories that make offering it (webcasting) wonderful.”

About two weeks ago, St. Joseph became the first church in the Peoria Diocese to begin webcasting its daily Masses. By accessing the parish website, parishioners can watch a live Mass on their computer. They can also access seven days of stored Masses through the Mass archives. In addition, funerals and weddings can be webcasted live, archived, or both.

The Rev. Tim Nolan, pastor of St. Joseph Parish, said this new technology helps parishioners who have a hard time making it to the church stay connected.

“It’s a way to better reach our homebound and those people who can’t travel to weddings and funerals,” he said.

“Webcasting is a response to the question, ‘How do you take care of people who can’t make it to Mass?” Fisher said. “Especially the elderly who helped build the church. We owe those people something.”

Webcasting helps reach what Fisher calls “medium people,” those who can get out, but aren’t as confident on snowy or rainy days. Mothers at home with sick children could also watch a webcast instead of missing church. “It’s an outreach to our parishioners and hopefully others. We are trying to find people where they are and be what we can be.”

Fisher, who manages the technological aspects of webcasting, said it also allows people to revisit a Mass. “We have people who want to hear a sermon again, especially if the sermon really touched you. It’s a great way to go back and review it,” he said.

Father Nolan has already had a positive response the webcasted funerals. “We have heard from families about how grateful they are for this,” he said. The first webcasted wedding is planned for September.

In 2005, Pope John Paul II wrote an Apostolic Letter urging clergy to embrace new communication technologies. Fisher said St. Joseph’s use of webcasting responds to that call. Nolan also said webcasting it another tool in spreading the word of the gospel. “It’s one more way of getting the message to people of how much God loves them and wants to be a part of their lives,” he said.

The church first considered webcasting about four years ago, but needed time to figure out the technology, Fisher said. It is working with a company called ChurchCAST, which specializes in recording the Catholic Mass schedule. Parishioners helped with initial set-up to reduce costs.

Page 2 of 2 - Nolan saw the potential for webcasting with sermons available at the church website. “Before this, we had audio recordings of our homilies. We were getting hits from all over the world. Technology has changed, and this is a way for us to keep up.”

The church is planning promote its new service in the upcoming weeks, “to put the word out” through brochures and training of those who serve the homebound, so it can set up webcasting for those who want it.

Fisher said Nolan would like to offer live webcasting at area nursing homes, along with clergy to administer communion during Mass. Plans to webcast on public access television are also being considered.

“We are still very new to this. We’ve only been doing it two weeks,” Fisher said. “But we are going to keep making changes to make it as easy to use as possible.”

The webcasts can be viewed at the church’s website, www.stjosephpekin.org, under the “Broadcasts” tab.